ARK All Saints Academy and Highshore School

Constituting almost an entire urban block, ARK All Saints Academy and Highshore School comprises several distinct built elements for three separate institutions. Three pavilion buildings are positioned around the site’s perimeter to accommodate two co-located schools and a sports hall. Central streets, linked to a series of distinct landscaped courtyards, order the insides of the two teaching pavilions animating the interiors with movement and natural light. Externally, the elevations are composed of an orchestrated kit of parts to ensure depth and rhythm at a scale that responds to the neighbourhood. At the site’s south-east corner sits a near-white brick chapel and tower, holding the line of the adjacent Victorian Terrace buildings and shaping a focal point at the intersection of Redcar Street with Wyndham Road.

ARK All Saints is the fifth AHMM-designed school development to win an RIBA National Award, following Great Notley Primary School, Westminster Academy, Kirk Balk Community College, Waverley School, and the Stirling Prize-winning Burntwood School. Described by the judges as a ‘classy and elegant transformation’, the campus brings together an 800-pupil academy, a school for children with special educational needs, and a chapel serving the local parish.

61 Oxford Street, meanwhile, is one of the latest in AHMM’s ‘city sandwich’ schemes, bringing a mix of retail, residential and office to one of London’s busiest shopping streets and acting as a catalyst for the regeneration of this part of London as Crossrail nears completion. Find out more about this year’s RIBA National Award winners here.

04/05/2016

61 Oxford Street and ARK All Saints Academy and Highshore School have been recognised with RIBA London awards. 61 Oxford Street, a mixed use ‘city sandwich’ building on London’s busiest high street was described by the judges as ‘thoroughly delightful with clever references to context, mixed use and skyline’ while ARK All Saints Academy, AHMM’s tenth RIBA award-winning school, was praised as ‘a brilliant transformation of a failing school... the architects’ experience of building many schools and learning every lesson in the book showed.’ The RIBA London awards, presented this year at the University of Greenwich, are given to UK buildings for their regional importance as pieces of architecture, and form the shortlist for the RIBA National awards to be announced in June.

24/10/2014

AHMM joined Rt Hon Harriet Harman QC MP, staff and students this week to celebrate the official opening of Highshore School, a Special Educational Needs School that forms one part of a suite of educational facilities on almost an entire urban block in Camberwell. Holding the line of Farmers Road, Highshore is a 2-3 storey building containing a variety of learning spaces arranged around a central internal street. The elevations – comprising a brick plinth, anodised aluminium fins and generously-sized glazed units – speak the same language as the pavilions of the neighbouring Ark All Saints Academy. Their rich colouring, however, lends a an appropriate degree of identity when set amongst the surrounding lighter tones.

05/02/2014

Ark All Saints Academy – a four-form entry ARK/CofE academy on the site of the former St Michael and All Angels CofE Academy in Camberwell – opened its doors to staff, students and the local community at the start of term last month. As part of the Feast of Candlemas, a dedication service was held last Sunday in the school’s new chapel – the Parish Church of St. Michael and All Angels.

21/11/2011

SMAA Academy & Highshore, our school project in Southwark has received planning permission.

The project, for clients Balfour Beatty, Southwark Council and ARK is made up of two separate schools sharing car-parking and facility management, and a church.

SMAAA is a three storey school, at 7266sqm and accommodating 800 pupils sponsored by ARK. Highshore is a two/three storey school at 3173sqm for 98 pupils. The church; St. Michael and All Angels, All Souls and Emmanuel Parish Church will provide space for 120 worshippers and is 260sqm.